Chief Compliance Officer

Overview

We are building a strong compliance and financial crime function from day one and are looking for a hands-on Compliance Officer & MLRO to design, implement, and maintain an effective Compliance + AML/CFT framework aligned with the CBB Rulebook and applicable Bahrain laws.

• Build and run the compliance framework (policies, procedures, monitoring plan, regulatory reporting calendar)
• Advise the Board & Senior Management on governance, conduct, conflicts, outsourcing oversight, and regulatory change
• Perform compliance reviews/testing, maintain issue logs, and track remediation
• Support licensing/onboarding, controlled function submissions, and regulatory correspondence
• Deliver compliance training and maintain records
• Establish AML/CFT program: risk assessment, client risk rating, CDD/EDD, monitoring concepts, sanctions/PEP controls
• Maintain AML/CFT documentation and registers (KYC files, STR/SAR logs, training logs)
• Review/escalate suspicious activity and handle STR/SAR submissions per Bahrain requirements
• Oversee AML/CFT controls across onboarding, investment/trading activity, and outsourced providers (administrator/custodian/IT-cyber)
• Prepare Board reporting and support audits and regulatory inspections

• 5+ years in Compliance + AML/CFT within regulated financial services (investment firm / asset manager / broker / fund manager)
• Strong working knowledge of Bahrain / CBB regulatory expectations (including controlled functions)
• Ability to draft policies and make them work in practice (monitoring/testing + regulator interaction)
• Solid experience with KYC/onboarding, sanctions/PEP screening, and STR/SAR handling
• Clear communication with senior stakeholders; confident Board-level reporting

• Prior controlled function approval in Bahrain (or another respected jurisdiction)
• Exposure to investment management/trading (incl. futures/derivatives and private capital mandates)
• Certifications:
  
  ICA / ACAMS / CISI (or equivalent)

Important: The candidate must be comfortable with background checks and fit & proper documentation for CBB approval